Dear Diary
by Ersatz.Love
Summary: Disgaea! Etna's whole being is poured out amongst a thousand pages...what happens when these pages are read by the one they are written about?
1. Ambience

Hi! This is sort of a sequel to "The Best Birthday Ever." It's not a true sequel per say, since you can probably read this without having read TBBE, but there are some references to TBBE so you might wanna read up on that if you haven't already. Anyways, this fic is gonna have alot of citrus in it, as there is in this first chapter, thus the M-rating. Just a warnin'. I do not own the rights to Disgaea, blah blah blah, someone else does. Now read the fic.

~*~

The tapping of footsteps could barely be heard from the hallway, almost as quiet as a fly landing on a window. A shadow hid behind its mistress as she glanced around the corner, and seeing that no one was there she crept down the staircase, ears erect and alert. It was almost evening; the afternoon was melting into night and it wouldn't be long before the castle became bustling with activity, the other vassals returning from missions or preparing dinner for everyone. She had very little time to do what she wanted to do.

Her hand came to rest against the rusty door, pushing it forward with little effort. She slipped inside, the click of the lock bouncing loudly off her ears, shoulders tensing in reflex. She grimaced as the strong scent of urine briefly hit her senses, clasping her gloved hand over her mouth to keep from breathing the foul smell.

'It's right here,' she reminded herself, crouching down and tapping the floor quietly until she heard a hollow noise. She groped at the tile for a moment before her fingertip snagged on a small knot, and with a tug the floor opened to a secret room. A smile crossed her face. Once more she listened for anyone outside, then lowered herself down the hole.

The room was vaguely illuminated from the light above, just enough to read for a short time. It was completely bare, sans a short table with a pen and book on its top. And a large book it was, for if anyone would see it they would immediately think that the table would be crushed underneathe the book's weight.

Thick leather slipped off of her arms, revealing her soft peach skin inch by inch until it released her slender digits. She knelt before the book, opening it and flipping through the pages until she reached a blank. There, she grasped the pen between her fingers, and she began to write.

'Nothing special happened today. He pretty much ignored me...just like he always does.'

She paused for a moment, briefly glancing at the previous page. It started off with the exact same sentence. A sigh escaped her lips, her mind beginning to wander, her hand seemingly beginning to write on its own.

'I wish he would look at me. I want him to love me again, like he did on his birthday. I wanna come closer to him, close enough to touch his hair...Close enough to touch him...For him to touch me...'

Her breathing became lighter as she remembered his hands on her stomach, inching closer to her belts.

'For him to kiss me...to taste me...for me to taste him...'

Her hands trembled as she recalled her lips against his, the metallic taste of her own blood still on his tongue as it danced with her own.

'His breath on my ear...his hips against mine...he called out my name...I remember...his sweat on my body...'

She reminisced his moans, his tongue lapping at her neck as she clung to him, too immersed in ecstacy to think of anything but him.

'I want him again...Was it just a one night stand? Does he still love me like he did when we...'

A loud crash suddenly jerked her out of her memories, a violent shudder racking her body as her muscles tensed in reaction. She held her breath, listening for more noise. It came in many voices; she recognized them as the other vassals, squabbling over whatever was just broken.

"You dumbass! That's the fourteenth plate you've broken this week! Can't you do anything right?"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I'm really really sorry! It slipped from my hands, and--"

"Whatever, clean this up before Miss Etna comes back, or she'll have your head!"

"Y-Yes sir! I'm really sorry!"

More commotion ensued, and her breath gently flowed out of her mouth in a quiet sigh of relief. They were at least three rooms over; she was in no danger of being found out. Her eyes drifted back down towards the paper, her teeth gently sinking into her bottom lip. A long line of ink stretched across the page, slicing through a few words, but leaving the page readable. Her hand had jolted when she heard the crash.

She read what she had written, biting her lip harder as she realized how far she went this time. Her writing was wiggly and difficult to read because of her constant trembling. As her ruby orbs drifted over the last word, she closed them and sighed once more. The magic had been broken.

'This is the only place I can say this,' she began to write, 'This is the only place where I can be alone...but lately, I've been feeling like I am alone no matter where I am. The only place I am not...is here, and in my sleep...my memories and my dreams are all that keep me company.'

She thought for a moment before ending the entry. Her memories...

Fingertips danced along the edges of the other pages, hesitating for a moment before flipping them over. She began to read the previous entries, skipping back to almost the very beginning. There were too many entries to count, precisely, but...it seemed that everything up until number twenty-four had to do with her past. There were still gaps in her memory, but it seemed like from there on she didn't mind leaving them as is. Everything from there on had to do with the prince.

She closed the diary, and it was put back in its place alongside the pen. The creaking sound of doors opening and shutting were the demoness's thanks and goodbye. But she knew she would be back. She knew she would return...

She always did.


	2. Horizontal Tango

Yay! Chapter 2 finally here! Thanks to everyone who has waited patiently for this!

...But they probably all went home by now...oh well...

~*~

Etna sighed dejectedly as she stared at the floor, deep into her own thoughts. It was just another ordinary, boring, depressing day. Well, one out of three isn't that bad, right? Sure she had plenty of work around the castle that she could be doing, but she let the rest of the vassals take care of that. And the day was certainly not depressing, for one look outside and you could plainly see a certain angelic foreigner frolicking in what little beauty the Netherworld had to offer.

Nevertheless, the demoness was bored and depressed. What use would it be at this point, she thought, to go looking for the prince? She hadn't seen him at all today. Perhaps that is why the day was off to a rough start; her schedule was very much interrupted, and thus she had too much free time on her hands.

As usual, she woke up earlier than everyone else. She snuck down the long corridor of the vassals' chambers, past the stairs, around the corner, through the throne room and into Laharl's bedroom. She would gently lift off the lid of his coffin, kneeling and hovering over him in a way to shadow his face from the impending morning light. Then she would just sit and watch him sleep until he began to stir, which was her signal to high-tail it out of there and get back to her own quarters.

But today was a disaster. As soon as she stepped through the doors to his room, she heard the ever-cheery voice of Flonne call out her name. Fifteen decibels too loud, might I add. As soon as the noise reached her delicate ears she instinctively spun around and zoomed past the angel, ignoring her confusion and hiding beneath the stairs.

It was a while before the Celestial gave up looking for her, and when she came back to Laharl's literal death bed, he was gone. She of course recorded this in her diary, but if I posted the contents here, this fic would far surpass its M rating. She in fact shocked herself that she knew so many curses that she tried to look some of them up in the dictionary afterwards.

'It wasn't really Flonne's fault,' she reasoned. 'She just...is really stupid. And loud... and has no common sense whatsoever.' Her brows knitted as she glanced outside, watching the angel dance with one of the prinnies. She silently wished the prinny's dance would somehow put her into a coma, but after several minutes of observation, she turned away with disgust.

"Why so blue, Etna-chan?"

The demoness jolted back to reality, crimson eyes meeting with deep blue. She sighed in relief. The voice belonged to a foreigner, but at least it belonged to the most level-headed of the bunch. Etna glanced back down at the floor as the blonde Earthling sat beside her. The older girl tucked some stray hairs behind her ear, looking over her younger mentor with concern.

"It's...nothing."

"Oh come on," Jennifer nudged her slightly. "I'm not as dumb as my comrade, remember? I know when something's up."

There was a short pause before Etna rocked her upper body back for a moment, then forward again, in a motion that would be accompanied by a chuckle had she been in a better mood. She released her tongue from the roof of her mouth, breathing in deeply a couple of times before she found the strength to speak her thoughts.

"Jennifer...what do...what do guys think...is romantic?" Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the young woman's face shift slightly towards astonishment, but then quickly into a sort of, 'Ohh, I know where this is going' kind of grin. Etna recognized this immediately and cut her off before she began her Sex 411 lecture.

"Ahh, no, no! It's...ah, for a book."

"Ohh...I didn't know you liked writing."

"Yeeeah...Flonne wanted a...romance novel, and..."

"Well, let's see..." Jennifer rested her chin on her gloved hand, searching her memory for something that would be appropriate. 'It's for Flonne, right? Hm...Aha!' She perked up, removing her hand from where it steadied her chin, curling it into a fist and bringing it down into her palm with a satisfying little smack.

"Dancing," she said with a smile, "Dancing is romantic."

"Dancing? Heck, anyone can do that." The demoness rose to her feet, immediately setting them to work. Jennifer watched with interest as she started breakdancing, techno songs automatically coming to mind. When it seemed like she wasn't going to stop anytime soon, the Earthling broke in with a smile plastered on her face.

"Ah...not that kind of dancing." The blonde sweatdropped as Etna tumbled out of a certain dance move involving spinning on your head, slightly dizzy, and replied to Jennifer's remark with a confused look.

"...What other kinds of dancing are there?"

"Well, there's the waltz, which is really romantic, and then there're the Latin dances like the salsa and the tango and the mambo...those are more sensual. Oh yeah, then there's square-dancing, and..."

Silence.

"...Well...I can teach you to waltz."

"Yeah!" Etna leaped up, staggering slightly as the room spun around her. "I bet Laha-- er, I mean, I bet...I bet Flonne would like it if I...wrote about that."

Jennifer smiled.

~*~

"Yeah, that's it! One, two, three, one, two, three, one, two, three...You're doing great! Keep up the pace!"

Etna wondered how she got into this mess. Not long ago she was worrying about her unrequited love; now she was worrying about stepping on her partner's feet. As all new dancers would, she had squished many a toe in the first thirty minutes, so much so that Jennifer switched her dance partner with a prinny. No one worried about stepping on a prinny's foot. They had no feet.

After she became moderately comfortable to dancing with a prinny, Jennifer switched her with a Red Skull. Etna came to the conclusion that this was because although Skulls had feet, their feet were very tiny. Finally, she was dancing with a somewhat normal partner, a scout by the name of Cid. But his name isn't important.

"One, two, three, one, two, three, turn. One, two, three..."

Jennifer kept pace, watching every detail as the two drifted across the dance floor. The awkward feeling of waltzing with a stranger had almost completely lifted, though she could tell Cid was reluctant to dance with her. She had noticed a few moments ago that he kept his feet a good distance away from hers, as well as moving them quite a bit faster.

'I wonder if there is any waltz music we can use here… A radio or something..?' The Earthling began tapping the tempo out on the floor instead of cycling through the first three numbers over and over. She noticed Thursday in the corner and strode over to him...her...it... with a smile.

"Are we doing good?" Cid failed to stop looking at the floor in fear that Etna's spiked boots would come smashing down on his toes.

"You're doing great, keep it up. Hey Thursday, can you please play some waltz music?"

"SEARCHING FOR MP3 FILE. BLEEP. BLIP. BLEEP. FILE FOUND."

The three of them were sent flying across the room as heavy metal blasted out of Thursday's speakers. After a few seconds of play, the music died down and the robot bleeped and blipped a few times in confusion.

"WRONG FILE. SORRY."

~*~

Anxiety drifted over her head like a veil, a bead of sweat rolling down the side of her face. She was hesitant. And who wouldn't be? Jennifer insisted that she was good enough to write about it, but there was a certain girlishness in the woman's voice that made it obvious she knew what Etna was really up to. She blushed.

The demoness heard a shifting behind her, and turning saw the blonde and her robot companion watching from around the corner. Upon being seen, the Earthling gave her a thumbs-up, while Thursday blipped a quiet cheer. The encouragement only made the girl blush more, but it was working. The veil was lifted, the butterflies retreated from her stomach and the lump in her throat was swallowed.

No prinnies in the room; the coast was clear. She took a deep breath, and...

"Priiince!"

The blue-haired boy snapped his attention towards the voice, eyes widening a bit as they fell upon his right-hand vassal. Her tiny black wings fluttered, letting her cross the room in two steps. She landed gracefully before the Overlord, immediately going on one knee and bowing before him.

"You called for my assistance?"

"I..." Laharl hesitated for a moment as he thought. "...Don't...think so..."

"...Ah...my mistake." A hint of overacting was in her voice, but the prince didn't pick up on it. She rose from her kneel and tried to act like her normal self, hoping she wouldn't sound as nervous as she felt. "Say, prince...what do you think of the waltz?"

"Waltz?"

"Yeah. It's...my new favorite dance."

"I've...never waltzed." He spoke slowly, unsure if he was using the right term.

"Ah...I can show you." Etna avoided looking back; she knew if she didn't focus on the plan, she would never have the courage to do this again. "Put one arm around my waist, like this, and the other hand like this..."

She could sense the anxiety from before immediately begin to infect Laharl as she put his arm around her. He tensed as her hand intertwined with his, her free hand resting on his shoulder. One second of hesitation...

...Then they began to waltz.

"It's so cute," Jennifer whispered, "They make such a cute couple...oh dear, his arm is supposed to be around her back. Ooh, she made a wonderful turn. She's doing great."

Thursday blipped quietly in agreement.

And indeed, inexperienced as they were, they waltzed better than any other amateur. No feet were squished, no hesitation in the turns, no falter in the tempo -- it was hard to believe that this was their first time waltzing for real. This thought was shared by the red-haired demoness, and she made sure that it would continue that way. Her eyes darted everywhere. To the floor -- get those feet moving. To the side -- two, three, turn. That's the way. To the floor again, watch your toes. That's the way.

"Etna..."

They darted up, and stayed there. She had made the mistake of looking him in the eyes.

"Ah, she missed a turn...Is that a rumple in the carpet? Oh no..." Jennifer opened her mouth to speak, but she suppressed her words as a cold metal claw rested on her arm, reminding her she was supposed to be out of sight. She could only watch in dismay as the plan crumbled to pieces...

...Or so it seemed. The demoness tripped over the crease, stumbling forward into the prince with the force of a fangirl's glomp. Her hands rushed forward to stop her plummet, and they came to rest against the cold stone wall. Her heart beat rose from the ordeal, then it seemed to stop. Time itself seemed to freeze; no breath was taken, no peep was heard. It was utter silence.

Their eyes were still locked. It took a moment for the information her other senses gave her to register -- she was leaning against him, skin against skin; her mouth but a centimeter from his. She could feel his jagged breaths against her lips, his erection against her front, and she forgot all about the plan. The thought that it had worked better than expected had never even crossed her mind. All she could think of was him...

He leaned forward, arms wrapping around her waist as he drew her closer against him. Her eyes closed and her tail curled slightly as she was swept into his tight embrace, ecstatic that she was once again in his arms. She wanted to remember the way his kiss tasted; the way he ran his hands over her body...

"Jennifer? Thursday? What are you doing here?"

"Gordon! Shhh!"

"I demand an explanation!"

Panic struck both lovers as the nitwitted American's voice broke the magic, the demoness jerking away and bolting from the room. "Wait, Etna!" Her beau raced after her, only to lose sight of her when he reached the staircase. She could have gone in any direction from that point...It would be useless to keep looking. Knowing her, it would be a while before she appeared again. He gave up, retreating to his room and hiding himself in his coffin.

'Look what you did...' Jennifer threw a sad glance towards the Overlord's room, grasping the sleeve of her unconscious comrade, whose fat jaw came in contact with the blonde's elbow just before Etna took off.

"THE PLAN FAILED." Thursday bleeped in sympathy. "WE WERE CLOSE."

"That poor girl..."


	3. Under Moonlit Sky

Wow, it's only been like...half a year since I last updated. Egads. And despite this I'm still getting reviews? I love you all!

I apologize greatly for letting my fanbase down. I'm going to dust off my PS2 and see if I can finally finish this fic. Again, thank you so much for caring even though it's such an old fic. Thank you!!

And without further adue...

Dear Diary: Chapter 3.

~*~

It was just another ordinary, boring, depressing day. Well, actually it wasn't. He had plenty of vassals to look after, but he decided to let them govern themselves that day. And the day didn't seem depressing at all, though it didn't have any sign of optimism either. And the day was far from ordinary, for it was the day of the Red Moon -- that is, the day the prinnies would be reincarnated, and a new batch of prinnies would be ready for the picking. Yet, it all seemed so normal. Normal that is, if you are the youngest Overlord that ever ascended the throne.

It had only been two hours since he woke up, and already he was tired of barking orders to his servants. Couldn't they do anything right by themselves? He needed a break. A hush fell over the room as the prince rose from his seat, pointing towards the brightest demon in the room -- a blue Nekomata.

"You. Take over command of these idiots until I get back."

"Meow." The catgirl saluted, and Laharl took his leave. Any change of scenery was good, he decided, even if it was a room full of rotting flesh. He set his sights a little bit higher of course, choosing to spend his time alone in the shops. He had time to think there. And his first thought was what happened a few days ago.

He had danced with her. It was the most awkward experience he had ever felt, yet he kinda liked it. He hadn't been able to put his arms around her since that one birthday... but he had always felt so strange around her after that. It wasn't that he didn't know what love was. He was just...afraid... He was afraid that if he opened his heart to love, Venus would sit in her heavens and laugh at him, turning her back on his desires and letting him down once more. All in spite of a certain angel's constant efforts to get him to open up...

...And speaking of which, he noted, her efforts were currently set on buying equipment from the weapons saleslady. Flonne was standing up at the counter, a newly recruited prinny at her side, and she was browsing the selection of claws, paws and jaws. What a bummer for that prinny to have just arrived on the same day that good portions of other prinnies were leaving. It stood solemnly by the angel's side, listening to their bargaining, as did Laharl.

"What about this one? This is a Cobra's Fang. It's dripping with deadly venom!"

"Oooh...that looks scary..."

"Or maybe this? It's a lizard's tail, still wriggling!"

"Eww..."

"Okay, how about this then? Tentacles! Great for groping in all sorts of places!"

"Um..."

"No? Alright, alright, I'll give you the cutest item in stock. A bat parasol for 1,200 HL, take it or leave it."

"Aw, it's cute! We'll take it!"

They exchanged the goods, Flonne giving the bat-shaped umbrella to an equally happy prinny. Laharl rolled his eyes. Of all the butt-whoopin' weapons in stock, she had to pick the lamest and weakest one of all. Alot of good a freakin' parasol would do against a Majin, he thought.

That was their problem though. He had problems of his own, like trying to figure out how to assess the current status of his...love...

Wait a second! That's it! He would ask Flonne. As much as she rambled on and on about such things, surely she would have some helpful advice for him. But he couldn't just ask her flat out... What was he going to go, trot up to her and ask her the best way to get some nookie? Entertaining as the thought was, it wasn't gonna happen. But...he didn't have to tell her what reasons it was for. He could ask a perfectly innocent question and get an innocent answer.

"Hey, Love Freak."

The Celestial's head turned immediately, unfazed and unoffended by her less-than-respectful nickname. She was used to it by now of course, but only when Laharl or Etna called her that. Anyone else would get a first-hand lesson in Beatdowns 404.

"Hello!"

"Tell me...what do you think is...romantic?" The prince spoke normally, as if it didn't matter what the angel trainee responded. A wide smile spread across Flonne's face as her first thought was that he was in love, but she immediately thought better of it...But then she decided she was right the first time.

"Aw, Laharl-san, you're finally opening your heart to the one you truly love, aren't you? Tell me, who is it?"

"Don't jump to conclusions like that. Love is stupid. I was just curious, that's all."

"Oh...that's too bad." Flonne sighed, then perked up as her naive mind set to romance stories that her angel friends had told her back in Celestia. "Well, let's see...dancing...nice dinners by candlelight...long walks on the beach...Oh...and the Stellar Graveyard is so beautiful, too...watching the sunset... That's all really romantic...don't you think?"

"...Such a waste of time..." The young Overlord sighed, walking away without so much as thanking her for the suggestions. In all actuality, dancing was a nice experience. Dinners by candlelight wasn't his thing though, as he would much prefer chicken wings infront of the television. But that last suggestion... it gave him an idea. Not so much a sunset, but...

He felt sorry for that prinny...It was going to miss out on all the fun.

~*~

He hadn't seen Etna all that much since she ran off three or four days ago. It was only yesterday that she had appeared again, still kind of quiet and depressed. He found her where she normally was found -- sleeping on the job, of course. The right corner of his lips twitched a little before stretching into a smirk, and for a moment he almost didn't have the courage to wake her up.

Almost.

His red sneaker levitated just over her tail, lowering itself until the prince could feel it underneath his foot. His weight shifted, and the demoness jolted awake with a howl, causing him to burst into a fit of laughter. Cruel as that was, he thought, she always looks so cute when she's surprised like that. He would make up for it later.

"What's the big idea?! I was having a nice dream!" The demoness spun around in her seated position, her tail between her legs. It took a second to realize just who it was that woke her up, but when the gears finally clicked, she calmed down.

"Oh, it's just you."

"What a way to greet the Overlord," Laharl chuckled, "Anyway...I need you to meet me at the dimensional portal at midnight."

"...What for?"

"You'll see. Now get the hell back to work."

He walked away, leaving a clueless demoness to wonder what in the Netherworld would he have her do at midnight.

…

Him..?

Er, that was a nice thought, but it probably wasn't going to happen. Most likely they were going to the Lunar Snowfield. It might be that he wanted to have another duel with Death… but then, why would he invite her to come, too? Nevertheless, the feeling of being wanted soon overcame the bombardment of questions, leaving her a little bit light-headed. Her usual cat-like smile appeared. This…

…This could be an opportunity!

But what could she do for him that would be considered romantic? She didn't want to go through another agonizing, day-long practice session, even though she had more than enough time to do so. Now, if somebody could just give her some ideas…

~*~

'I can't believe I'm doing this,' thought Etna. And indeed, it was an appropriate thought, for the one she was visiting was permanently number one on her Black List, due to his actions the other day. But who would know better about what guys thought was romantic? If you were to ask about guy problems, you would ask a guy, right?

Still, the last thing she ever thought she would do was ask advice from some dumb Earthling. As she approached the hospital, that familiar scent of fresh blood became noticeable. Vassals that were unsuccessful in their missions; warriors coming home after a long battle, and even just normal, everyday demons with a fever were all gathered there, waiting to be treated by that ronin-turned-nurse.

Said nurse was currently amputating some demon's arm. The screams of agony piqued her interest, and for a moment, Etna stood by and watched the ordeal. The arm to be removed was almost completely black, rotting away even as its owner was alive. Poisoned, most likely - the condition having gotten to the point where even the strongest cleric could not help. The nurse came with a blood-stained axe, marking the spot where the arm was to be severed.

The heavy blade was raised over the nurse's head, and in one fell swoop, the job was done. A foul-smelling slime oozed out of the blackened limb, followed by a thick, red gelatin-like substance. It was in fact his blood, curdled by the venom. Her eyes traveled up to the demon's face. He was out cold from the drugs he was given, much to her disappointment. She had expected such a horrible cry of pain… Oh well.

Etna walked away as a crowd gathered to place bids on the arm. She found the injured human she had come to visit immediately, mentally grinning as she looked him over. He had bandages all over his body, sans most of his black-and-blue face, and a brace on his neck. Jennifer gave him quite the ass-kicking, obviously.

"Did it hurt much?"

"It's so unlike Jennifer to do something like that." Gordon spoke to no one in particular, Etna rolling her eyes in response. Not four seconds and she was already sick of him, as if the amputation was like watching clouds go by. Still, she came here for a reason.

"Gordon, what do guys think is romantic?"

"Romantic?" the American repeated, "Why on Earth would you-"

"It's for a book."

'A documentary, perhaps? Certainly she would not be one to write something so far as a romance novel. Well, let's see… Of course!' He motioned for her to come closer, as if it were some big secret that no one should ever find out.

"There is one thing that no guy can possibly resist…"

The demoness was all ears.

"…Teriyaki Pizza Shack."

"DROP DEAD."

Her reaction was instantaneous and logical, for you see, fist plus face times force equals Gordon smashed through a stone wall. Etna stomped off angrily as the nurse and her attendants paid no attention whatsoever. Then again, it was true. Guys love food. Still, she wasn't about to go through her last cooking fiasco.

But... he might get cold...

~*~

It was rather warm when she walked over to the Dimensional Gatekeeper, small bag in tow. Midnight was fast approaching, and though she was early she found Laharl already waiting for her. He had the cutest smile on his face as he watched the gatekeeper take up her staff and slice it through the air, opening a portal that lead to who knows where.

His hand took hers, and the two jumped into the vortex as they had done so many times before. The drop in temperature was sudden, her cue for her wings to start flapping as to slow down their descent. They landed softly on the ice, standing before a tall cliff. She could see the normally pure snow tainted with a crimson glow, the moon's blood red color reflecting off of the entire landscape. The first thing anyone would notice, however, is that they were completely surrounded by prinnies.

"Come on, it's going to start soon." The prince bounded up the slippery rocks in little time, motioning for his vassal to follow. She obliged, wings opening once more, each flap sending a black feather or two down onto some prinnies' heads. Surprisingly, the clifftop bore no snow, though it was just as cold up there as it was at the bottom.

What a sight it was, indeed! That icy platform ahead, overlooking the rest of the Netherworld, though its view was nothing compared to the view from the cliff. She could see a phantom dressed in red, calmly waiting for the prinnies to reach their destination. And above them all was that glorious red monolith in the sky.

"I thought we could, you know, watch..." The prince trailed off as his vassal sat beside him, opening her bag and taking out a container. She gripped it with both hands, focusing on it in a way that a red mage focused before she cast a spell. After a few seconds, she gave it to him with a smile.

"I thought you might like this, in case you get cold or something."

He could feel the heat from the hot beverage even through the plastic. He took a sip, careful not to let it burn his tongue, and smiled. 'Hot chocolate. How thoughtful...and out of character.'

Together they watched and waited until the prinnies arrived at the platform, gathering around Death as he counted each and every one of them. When it seemed that no more would arrive, he raised his arms into the air; his robes beginning to float as if a gust of wind came up from underneath him. All at once the prinnies opened their mouths wide, the glints in their eyes leaving shortly before their souls did. Balls of pure white began their ascent, their short-term bodies collapsing to the ground as if they had merely been dolls without stuffing.

With the red moon as his witness, Death himself floated upwards, guiding the souls to the upper world to be reincarnated. As the light disappeared into the light of the moon, it seemed as if the entire snowfield was a field of fireflies, peace disrupted by a child and sending the glowing insects into the sky. Yet as the life of a firefly ends so early, so did this event. The only evidence that this event ever took place was the formless prinny suits that littered the platform.

Silence swept over the snowfield as the two were brought back to reality. The surrounding cold came back to mind, and the demoness leaned against her better half, leeching off of him for warmth. He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She turned to face him, the prince embracing her as his hand traveled down her back, lightly grazing over her bottom and diving down to her tail.

"I'm sorry…" He felt her flinch as his fingers reached her bruised spot, still sensitive from his earlier prank. He fondled it for a moment, massaging the sore spot gently before he rested his hand on her back, its counterpart sliding up her bare skin, over her tight leather top, until he could feel her soft crimson hair underneath his fingertips.

"Laharl, I wanted to tell you-"

Pain suddenly overtook him. He released Etna from his embrace, his arms wrapping around his stomach as it growled loudly, the prince doubling over in pain.

"What's wrong?!"

"I have to go-!"

The demoness watched cluelessly as he raced down the slope, stumbling through the portal they had come in. Her eyes drifted down to the container of hot chocolate that he had dropped, picking it up and bringing it into the moonlight to look.

"This expired…two months ago…"


End file.
